The "I'm not a racist, but" myth

These days, the term "Social Justice Warrior" seems to evoke a mixed bag of feelings. Some folks wear it proudly as a badge of honor, using it as their declaration that they fully intend to fight injustice and inequality on every front. Other use it as an insult, implying that people need to quit fighting for others and work on becoming better people themselves.

I think those views represent the extreme edges of the term's usefulness. If we examine the term as a spectrum, I expect that the majority of us fall somewhere in between - we might have an issue or two that we are willing to fight for, but we aren't going to wall for everything.

Image by Gerd Altmann (Creative Commons CC0)

Response to Questions for the Candidates - Reputation - Part Six

Welcome back! I am continuing to respond to the questions from ADF members directed to the candidates running for office. 

Today's responses relate to the subject of our Reputation.

Image by Gerd Altmann (Creative Commons CC0)

JA:  How would you work to make ADF as respected and legitimate as any other church in the USA, and the world.

I see respect and legitimacy as two separate things.

Respect is something that we work together to earn. It is a collective response by the rest of the world that is the result of our actions. We need to understand that we are being judged by others not only by our individual actions, but also by those around us. How often have we heard (or even used) the phrase “not very Christian” to describe bad acts by a member of that religion? When the Catholics were struggling with their priest/altar boy scandals, other Christian churches felt the impact, as well. But those churches that were quick to respond and affirm that their own beliefs and actions were not aligned with the scandal? Those were the churches which weathered the best. They did not expect respect to find them, they actively sought it. I think that ADF is in a similar position – we are a part of the greater Pagan community, and any event which rocks that community will at the very least bump against us. By solidifying our positions of no tolerance and building strong foundations of consent and caring for those around us, we actively earn respect. By maintaining public presence – through our public high day rites and our presence at various non-ADF centric events, such as Pantheacon, Paganicon, and ConVocation, we create respect.

Legitimacy, however, I see as a matter of legal viability and longevity. We are a young religion when compared to Christianity, and Christianity is still considered to be young in some Hebrew or Islamic organizations. In this sense, I believe that legitimacy is not something we will achieve in our lifetimes, but rather, it is the legacy that we are striving to provide for future generations. The foundations that we are building now – the structure of the Core Order of Ritual, the study programs, the networking of groves and persons, the training of our clergy – are the things that will secure that inheritance.

Post-ConVocation Thoughts

I've given myself a week to decompress from ConVocation, because there was just so much going on, I needed that much processing time.

Don't get me wrong - it's a great problem to have.

I made a brief post to FB immediately after the con, thanking the people and groves who helped make the Druid Fellowship Suite happen again this year, as well as those who stopped by for conversation since that is what truly made it a success. It is always a privilege to coordinate that suite, as well as the druid hallway arrangements, and I felt that this year it was even more so. I invest a lot of time and effort in order to insure that our Suite suitably demonstrates my understanding of Hospitality, and it is rewarding to see that same effort returned by our guests. I take it as proof that *ghosti  is alive and well.